The Second Annual Taste of MetroWest on March 13 featured the usual crowd of catering venues, local restaurants, farms, bakeries, drinks connoisseurs, and -- requested by invitation -- the Department of Defense Combat Feeding Directorate at Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center.
Nearly 50 different exhibitors participated in the tasting at the Sheraton Framingham Hotel & Conference Center in Framingham, Mass.
Amid the pristine white tablecloths delicately layered with precisely placed edible art was CFD's booth, which offered a little slice of good ole' no-nonsense food in military-issue green Cambro containers. Tasters sampled food including two Meals, Ready-To-Eat entrees, Unified Ground Ration Heat and Serve entrees, and two First Strike Ration shelf stable sandwiches.
Massachusetts State Senator Karen Spilka joked about the CFD's first visit to the State House and recalled how the room was packed because there were goodies to be sampled. After noshing on a few of the different foods at the CFD booth, Spilka said, "I would have never thought this was an MRE!"
That's what the CFD likes to hear. New combat rations are developed based on the wants, needs, and ideas of war fighters, who frequently evaluate them. Since CFD created MREs in 1954, the ration products have improved and the menu has expanded exponentially.
There was a variety of CFD food items to choose from at the tasting: Asian pepper steak with vegetables, Mexican-style chicken, vegetarian chili, meatballs with mafalda pasta, and Mexican wraps. Unlike the other foods at the event, all of these products have a shelf-life of three years. This tasting for the public allowed CFD to dispel many popular myths about combat rations.
"I've always thought rations were freeze-dried," said Amirthan Daniel of Framingham, Mass. "I don't camp, so I've never tried MREs before, but these were surprisingly good. It's also really great that we are doing such wonderful things here in Massachusetts."
The Taste of Metrowest, all about connecting the Framingham-Natick community, was created by the MetroWest Chamber of Commerce. Members of the MetroWest community were able to meet, greet, eat, drink, and be merry at this lively tasting.
"We believe the 'Taste' is very important for the community to connect with the restaurants and the non-profits in the area," said Phyllis O'Hare, office manager for the MetroWest Chamber of Commerce.
NSRDEC maintains a large presence in the community. Many of its residents work at, or know people who work at, NSRDEC. The hundreds of people who attended this event might have been surprised to see the CFD booth dishing out combat rations to passersby, yet many people who took time to stop at the booth appreciated hearing about the rations, even if they did not try them out themselves.
"From what I observed, it looked like they were generally interested in what our war fighters eat, even if they weren't interested in sampling it," said Britni Mahan of the Combat Rations Team. "I think it was also a hit with the veterans (who) attended, because they were able to share stories about what they used to eat in the field, and it was a great opportunity for us to show them how far we have come. It was hard to compete with the restaurants and chefs around us, but we offered something unique."
While the general public does not really have the opportunity to know what it is like to be a Soldier, a number of people were able to experience a small taste of what it's like to be a Soldier at the Taste of MetroWest.
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